The House Approved HB 6 – What Does That Mean for You?

The Texas House recently passed a bill that will have a very serious impact on those implicated by drug charges.

Last September, Texas House Bill 6 took effect. HB 6 is aimed at combating the opioid crisis, particularly the surge in fentanyl-related deaths, by raising the criminal penalties for individuals involved in the manufacturing, distribution, or delivery of fentanyl, especially in cases where the substance leads to a fatal overdose.

Under HB 6, individuals can now be charged with murder if they manufacture, distribute, or deliver fentanyl that results in someone’s death. The bill also strengthens penalties for possession of controlled substances, making it a state jail felony to possess even small amounts of fentanyl or other similar substances.

Why HB 6?

The US has seen a spike in drug overdoses in recent years. Troublingly, over 67% of these overdoses were caused by fentanyl. In 2022, there were an estimated 107,941 deaths caused by overdose with over 80% being caused by opiods in America according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse.

What is Fentanyl?

Fentanyl is a manufactured opioid used for pain management. Traditionally, it was created as a pain management tool, but decades of overprescription have resulted in a national epidemic. Major companies such as Teva, Allergan, and Johnson & Johnson settled for more than $21 billion for overprescribing opioids to military servicemen.

As a result, demand for fentanyl has grown exponentially, and now fentanyl can easily be made outside of a pharmacy, increasing supply. Fentanyl is dangerous because it is about 80-100 times stronger than morphine and about 50 times more potent than heroin according to the National Coalition Against Prescription Drug Abuse. It is extremely addictive in small quantities.

Recently, fentanyl has found its way into contaminating fake prescription medications and other drugs such as heroin, cocaine and marijuana in lethal doses. Many dealers have been found lacing their drugs with fentanyl to make them more addictive.

Why does this matter?

While the opioid settlement provides substantial financial compensation to mitigate the extensive damage caused by the opioid epidemic, it does little to prevent the actual distribution of homemade opioids like fentanyl, which is not the lead cause of opioid-related fatalities.

HB 6 is meant to be that stop-gap to ensure dealers are fully accountable for their actions, and to force the market to self-regulate if it wants to avoid murder charges. However, this also means that small-time drug dealers may now find themselves at the forefront of a murder investigation if their product is found to have been laced with fentanyl.

Possession Penalties:

Any of the above penalties may be raised to the murder charge if their purchaser overdoses on a fentanyl-laced product.

Contact Price & Twine LLC | Criminal Defense Lawyer in Georgetown, Texas

If you or a loved one has been charged with a narcotics offense in the Georgetown area, then you need to hire an experienced drug defense lawyer to fight for your rights.

Don’t wait another moment to fight for your freedom. Call Price & Twine at (512) 354-1880 for a free consultation about your alleged drug or narcotics crime.

Price & Twine, PLLC represents clients throughout the greater Georgetown metropolitan area, or any of the surrounding areas including Round Rock, Cedar Park, Leander, Taylor, Hutto, Killeen, Temple, Belton or Harker Heights.